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ChatGPT store is open for business

How it works:

After months of waiting, ChatGPT Plus and Enterprise users now have access to its store. It lets you create your own GPT agent without coding and monetize them by making it available on the platform’s store. Others have the option to download or pay for the GPT you created.

Limitless potentials to make a return

Not only does this present a new way to sell digital products in the form of AI, but it opens up the potential for ecommerce and store friendly AI that can be listed in the marketplace. For a subscription of $20 per month, ChatGPT Plus users will also be given access to Dall-E for image generation, data analysis and access to the GPT-4 language model.

TikTok Shop plans to grow 10-fold

TikTok is now a shopping essential

A recent report from OnlineDasher says that 55% of TikTok users have made purchases after encountering a brand or product on TikTok, cementing the platform's growing influence in the realm of online shopping.

TikTok’s plan to capture the U.S.

TikTok's expansion plan in the US is based on strategic initiatives, including providing free shipping benefits and offering incentives for influencers across categories like makeup, fashion, gadgets, and more. 

To propel its growth in the US market, TikTok aims to expand its operations to $17.5 billion. The success of TikTok Shop is attributed to its ability to incentivize brands to collaborate with content creators with the potential of viral content on a low-cost entry point.

Featured News

'Food delivery is a way of life' according to 1000 Singaporeans

1000 Singaporeans ang Hong Kong residents say that food delivery is a way of life. It expanded into groceries, non foods, gifting and even in app donations like tipping.

Food delivery usage rate is still sky high

• 68% of people use food delivery daily

• 80% of will use it in the future

Time and energy is the biggest reason for food delivery

• 87% get more free time as a result of deliveries

• 58% did not have time to cook meals

• 58% did not want to cook at all

The future of spending

• 62% of consumers expect to spend more on food delivery in the next year

• Deliveroo said that users were using food delivery more regularly compared to pre-pandemic.

• Average spending on food delivery services has also increased to $118 per month from $108 per month in 2022

  • Those aged between 46- 55 spending the most at an average of $169 per month

• 38% want to spend more on healthier food options, 

• 35% want customizable food orders

Google Cloud announces AI for ecommerce

Last Thursday, Google Cloud announced its move in revolutionizing the customer experience and operational efficiency for brands with its launch of innovative AI tools.

These include:

1. An advanced AI chatbot designed to engage in conversations with users and recommend products based on user preferences and queries.

2. Vertex AI search that ranks products more effectively, delivering search results closely aligned with what the customer is looking for.

3. Google Cloud's customer service AI agents who are able to summarize conversations with customers. The AI agents can also display internal information that can also help in resolving customer issues, thereby enhancing the efficiency of customer support services.

Google has also been experimenting on AI use cases for physical retail stores with Google Distributed Cloud Edge.

Moxii Minutes

Returnmates/Sway raises $19.5M to manage delivery and returns - Sway offers a two-way platform and tracker and convenient returns from your doorstep. Sway’s results says that brands saw a 66% reduction in lost package rates and a 20% increase in repeat purchases. The returns feature also reduces unit costs by 15% and cycle times go from 7 days to less than 3 days.

Shopee Philippines brings in Halal food sellers - Shopee has 80M monthly users while Islam is practiced by 5% of Filipinos. The move, aimed to promote diversity and MSMEs, gives sellers a crash course on product listing guidelines, UI navigation, business insights and access to tools needed to succeed in the digital market.

Alibaba's logistics arm launches group delivery within 5 days - Orders from different ecommerce platforms and stores are put into a single package at a warehouse, which is then sent to the US. The goal is to improve convenience for Chinese customers living in the US who continue to buy online from their home country.